


Caught

by Greyias



Series: The Serpent's Den [5]
Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: (probably incorrect) speculation for the end of this storyline, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Originally Posted on Tumblr, Romance, Tumblr Ask Box Fic, Tumblr Prompt, slight spoilers for Fractured Alliances, very likely not canon compliant (ask me if I care)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-11
Updated: 2018-03-11
Packaged: 2019-03-29 19:21:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13933620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Greyias/pseuds/Greyias
Summary: This was also the point where she began to wonder if Theron had ever gotten away with anything in his life, or if every moment of his existence had been spent extracting himself out of one mess or another





	Caught

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a prompt from consular-sevasy on Tumblr: "We’re only in trouble if we get caught."

“We’re only in trouble if we get caught.”

It seemed to be one of Theron’s favorite phrases, generally said about ten seconds before they in fact  _did_  get caught. 

The first time had been on Yavin as he led her into the cramped lift leading up to the one of the guard towers to “get a better lay of the land”, although from the way his hand drifted to the small of her back and the barely restrained grin she suspected perhaps his intentions were a little less professional than stated. That should have stopped her, but something about his close proximity had set her heart racing and made her forget about strictly adhering to the rules and risking the mountain of trouble she could land in if they were caught in whatever this thing they had was.

The giddy flutter in Grey’s stomach and his breath ghosting across her skin as he leaned in close lasted the entire ride for the lift, but was abruptly ended as the doors whooshed open to reveal a very confused set of guards. She didn’t even hear what his quick stammered excuse was as he hastily reversed the direction of the lift, too distracted by the burning in her cheeks as she tried to unsuccessfully disappear into the floor.

The next time he said it had been years down the line while trying to obtain supplies for the resistance on Nar Shaddaa. Specifically, a weapons cache that had been “lost” in customs — just waiting for its owner to claim it. Like many of their missions together, there were three ways to approach it: the easy way (filling out the paperwork of several shell corporations before handing everything off to the resistance), the hard way (an elaborate heist that Hylo had dreamed up), and then the Theron Shan way. 

The last somehow always involved explosions, even though his simple act of slicing into a few key security systems at the spaceport, as well as temporarily “borrowing” the AIs of several loader droids did not involve munitions in  _any way whatsoever_. By the time everything was said and done, she had come away with a singed cape, smoking ponytail, and a very contrite boyfriend trying to explain how this  _never_  happened, which was a bald-faced lie if she had ever heard one.

Yet somehow, the next time Theron uttered it only a scant few weeks later, she believed him  _again._  Even though Lana was waiting for a debrief of their latest mission, surely alerted to their arrival back on planet. It didn’t help that he had whispered it in that low voice of his, the hot breath in her ear sending shivers down her spine. It honestly seemed like a reasonable, logical explanation as he pulled her down onto the bed in her quarters, deft fingers undoing the hidden clasps of her armor with practiced ease. Somehow even attracting the ire of her long-suffering Sith advisor and friend seemed like a distant concern as the warmth of his skin pressing against hers shoved almost everything else aside. 

It was probably best that the door had swished open  _before_  he had finished divesting her of her modesty completely. Although that didn’t prevent her from stealing the comforter and hiding under it while he flailed helplessly about a schedule mixup as Lana leveled both him and the Jedi-shaped blanket with a deeply unimpressed, and thoroughly disgruntled stare.

This was also the point where Grey began to wonder if Theron had ever gotten away with anything in his life, or if every moment of his existence had been spent extracting himself out of one mess or another. It certainly  _seemed_  that way. He had yet to utter that phrase in her presence without whatever they were trying to avoid surely happening within a short period of time. Whether it was them trying to not awaken a giant killer robot on Iokath, or him simply trying to fit in a sweet romantic gesture at an inopportune moment, he inevitably  _always_ got caught.

Which was probably why she glared so fiercely both at Lana and his shimmering form over the holo when they suggested continuing his cover with the Order of Zildrog, rather than getting them get him  _out_  of there right that very instant.

“Look,” he said, “my cover is still intact. I’m more valuable here, keeping an eye on them and feeding you intel. Besides, I won’t be in trouble unless I get caught—”

He seemed to sense that he’d crossed a line, statement ending in a lurch as his expression shifted from determined to uncertainty. Even though Grey was fairly certain Lana agreed with his assessment, she wisely remained quiet as the Jedi made abundantly clear Theron’s  _real_  value. Unfortunately, the very un-Jedi argument based on emotion didn’t win out in the end, because somehow even then he managed to convince her. He was a professional, he knew what he was doing, and he could keep the Alliance (and her) safe if he just got them more intel. He  _promised_  he would pull out before anyone ever suspected him of being a double agent. He  _wouldn’t_  get caught.

So he, of course, did… necessitating a very daring rescue from both her and Lana, as per usual.

Long after that, and the long series of battles and adventures that resulted from their clash with the Order of Zildrog, they found themselves at a stifling political function neither of them really wanted to be at, but still had to make an appearance for. While they had both been trained for the deft niceties of politics, it did not come naturally, so it was with only the most minor of protests that she let him lead her out onto a vacant balcony under the stars, even though they were supposed to be making small talk with various members of the Chiss Ascendancy. She needed the air.

“I thought he’d never shut up,” Theron muttered as he very quietly shut the door behind them. “Who knew Chiss could be so chatty?”

“You apparently haven’t spent that much time around Saganu when he gets on the subject of the haunting sounds of the double viol.”

“I’ll keep that in mind if I ever need a nap,” he said absently, seemingly more intent on peering into the large windows lining the balcony. “I don’t think they noticed we gave them the slip. Probably have at  _least_  a good fifteen minutes before anyone even thinks to start looking for us. Plenty of time.”

“Let me guess,” she said absently, too busy taking in the unfamiliar constellations above to pay attention to his usual overly complex romantic espionage shenanigans, “we’ll only ‘get in trouble if we get caught’?”

“No,” there was a shaky thread in his voice, “not this time.”

She frowned slightly, but was too intent on trying to trace the unfamiliar variant on her favorite constellation to look away. “No trouble? Or we won’t get caught? Because neither of those sound like you.”

“Oh, we’re  _definitely_  going to get caught,” he said, no hint of false bravado this time, “and probably encounter more trouble than either of us ever expected. That is, I mean, if you say ‘yes’.”

That finally caught her attention, and she reluctantly pulled her gaze away from the stars to turn back to him at the windows, but he wasn’t there. He was down on one knee, face lit up with the most nervous, earnest expression she had ever seen as he held out a small box, the starlight glinting off the tiny stone contained within. 

“But some trouble is worth it,” he said quietly, “don’t you think?”

The answer was yes, just as it had always been. Because no matter how much he trouble he invited into her life, he was worth every single moment. The good and the bad, now and forever.


End file.
